Talking Innovations | Getting to the Post

A Common Problem: With today’s busy work schedules, with many people being unable to make it to their local post office if they’re holding down a full time job.

I receive a lot of parcels for my small business that I run in my spare time, but I constantly have issues getting to the post office during business hours to collect them. Is there anything that I can do to make it easier to collect parcels when it suits me?

This is a common problem with today’s busy work schedules, with many people being unable to make it to their local post office if they’re holding down a full time job. And this becomes an even bigger issue for couples with two full time careers, let alone when there is a commute to deal with at the start and end of each day.

Fortunately the prevalence of this problem has inspired Australia Post to come up with a solution – 24/7 Parcel Lockers. The system requires you to sign up for MyPost, which can be done via the Australia Post website. Once you are registered, you can start having any future parcels delivered to the address of your nearest parcel locker, with thousands of lockers already scattered around the country.

Once a parcel is received for you to collect you will be automatically notified that it has arrived, via text or email. You can then go to the parcel locker at any time within the next 48 hours to collect your parcel using your mobile number and the access code sent in the notification.

The system can also be used to send parcels, to do so you just need to go to the nearest parcel locker and follow the prompts. Once you close the locker door you will automatically receive a tracking email as proof of posting.

Before using the parcel locker system you should be aware of some of the limitations, including:

The lockers can only be used for parcels up to a certain size and weight;

If you don’t collect your parcel within 48 hours it will be returned to the nearest post office where you will need to collect it in the traditional way;

The lockers cannot be used for goods that were not sent via Australia Post, so check before making any online purchases to ensure that you know which company is being used to freight; and

You can’t use the lockers for some items (e.g. alcohol).

For more information visit the Australia Post website or contact your Crowe Horwath adviser on albury@crowehorwath.com.au.

Any information in this article has been prepared without taking into account your personal circumstances. You should seek professional advice before acting on any material. While reasonable care is taken in the preparation of this information to the extent allowed by legislation, Crowe Horwath (Aust) Pty Ltd ABN 84 006 466 351, accepts no liability whatsoever for reliance on it.